Shadows of the Damned: Hella Remastered Reviews
There's a lot to talk about with Shadows of the Damned: Hella Remastered. The wild world, the funny writing, the varied and tense gameplay, the rockin' soundtrack, the silly characters, the serious moments, or the awesome sense of progression, just to name a few enjoyable things. It only took me about 8 hours to finish the game and most of that was in one sitting. I have only played Shadows of the Damned once at PAX East 2024 earlier this year and it was such a great demo, the full game delivered all of that and more. Add in the New Game Plus feature that lets you keep your late game upgrades or the optional gyro aiming, and you have an incredibly arcade-y experience that keeps you laughing and blasting for hours. The game launches on October 31st and I can't recommend it enough. This is a punk rock gem that everyone can love.
Shadows of the Damned: Hella Remastered doesn't reinvent the wheel, but it offers a new glimpse at a fascinating relic of the seventh console generation.
Back in 2011, Shadows of the Damned was unrepentantly daft, and as Hella Remastered serves as an entirely faithful update, preserving the game with 4K resolution at up to 60fps, in 2024, it only seems all the more unhinged. This remains a dose of unapologetic, stupid fun, however, even if time hasn't been all that kind to it.
Shadows of the Damned: Hella Remastered is one of those games that came from a different era of games development, where game designers and writers were not afraid to push the boundaries of what was unacceptable by society's standards. Shadows of the Damned remains unchanged, with every moment dripping with sexuality, exploitation, and profanity. People might have a hard time accepting Shadows of the Damned for what it is, but those who do will be surprised by a game that still holds up against modern standards in game design and gameplay.
Ultimately, it’s a stupid fun action game driven by gore, a well-acted story, and a thick amount of creativity that looks better and acts better than it did back in 2011.
Shadows of the Damned: Hella Remastered is a great excuse to experience the simple, crude, and bombastic joys of a proper cult classic, even if its writing and humour feel thoroughly out of place in today's day and age.
Shadows of the Damned: Hella Remastered is a mixed-bag experience. While I was a fan of the game when it was first released in 2011, you can really feel its age in this remaster.
Nothing was done in this Hella Remastered to help Shadows of the Damned in the aspects in which the game underperformed at launch, thirteen years ago. Hence, the game has today the same qualities and the same problems of yesterday, but the latter weigh down the experience much more than before.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Shadows of the Damned is still a fun romp dense with stimulating set-pieces and gimmicks. The battles are rowdy shootouts with aggressive naked monsters and dodge-rolling into them and smacking them around with Johnson is as tense as ever. Garcia’s controls are fluid and have exaggerated animations that reinforce the silliness inherent in the premise.
A trip to the bowels of hell was insane a decade ago and has lost none of its charm. However, it is a game for nostalgic players and will not appeal much to younger players.
Review in Slovak | Read full review
Shadows of the Damned: Hella Remastered is just as offbeat and captivating as it was when it originally came out 13 years ago. The story works partially because of how it isn't afraid to be funny and gross, and the lack of malice sells the game, even if the humor doesn't strike a chord for some people. The gameplay is fine enough that the rough edges can be ignored at times. It sounds just as good as before and looks much better, but one can't help wishing that more care had been taken to create something more than a barebones port of the original.
Shadows of the Damned: Hella Remastered is not for everyone. While its over-the-shoulder action and moody vibes previously established the original as a cult classic, its overly edgy style, poor optimization, and derivative gameplay make this version feel more like a dark shadow compared to the industry greats.
Shadows of the Damned was perhaps Suda51's quirkiest game, and it still is, even after 13 years since its original release on the 7th gen of consoles. As a remaster, however, at least on the Nintendo Switch, Hella Remastered looks more like a simple port, with no significant graphical changes or content additions to justify a second purchase by those who have already played it.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Shadows of the Damned Hella Remastered brings the return of a classic that was previously stuck on old consoles, so that anyone can play it on modern platforms. It contains the original experience and content, with some slight extras and improved graphics and performance. So we have a definitive version of the game. It's a shooter with Mikami's personality and Suda51's crazy world, visual style and characters.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Shadows of the Damned: Hella Remastered is outrageously fun, with Garcia’s romp through hell as good now as it was back in 2011. Don’t get me wrong, it can show its age in places and I have no doubt that the crude and outdated humour won’t be for everyone, but for me? It was an absolute blast to play, with the game looking and feeling better than ever with the remaster’s improvements.
Shadows of the Damned: Hella Remastered isn’t without its problems. But again, they’re not new problems – pretty much everything that was bad about the game 13 years ago still stands. But everything good about the game is still just as good in 2024 as it was in 2011, which means that, as remasters go, this one has probably achieved exactly what it set out to do.
Shadows of the Damned: Hella Remastered is still as offbeat and endearing as it was when it was originally released 13 years ago. The story works precisely because it is not afraid to be funny, disgusting, and mischievous (perhaps too much so) which might bother some. The gameplay is still quite good and varied today. The 4K resolution and 60 fps, is the only real difference from the original, which would not justify buying this version. However, considering the price, €24.99, if you want an over-the-top and unusual experience in the underworld, give it a chance, you won't regret it!
Review in Italian | Read full review
To be fair, what is actually disappointing about Shadows of the Damned: Hella Remastered is that, as a remaster, it’s not the most impressive piece of work out there. The colors are drab, the particle effects are still dated, and the gameplay, whilst pretty good, should have received an extra layer of polish. With that being said, I had a bit of fun with it. Everything that had to do with Shinji Mikami’s side of the project, namely the gameplay, worked wonders for me. The Suda51 side of things was a mixed bag at best.
Shadows of the Damned: Hella Remastered brings Suda51’s cult classic to new life with enhanced visuals, a darkly humorous narrative, and intense demon-slaying action. The remaster preserves the original’s unique style while adding some welcome refinements. Although the combat can be repetitive, the game’s atmospheric puzzles, challenging boss encounters, and compelling underworld setting make for an unforgettable journey through hell. Garcia Hotspur’s quest to rescue his girlfriend, Paula, pushes both him and players to their limits, and the result is a devilishly entertaining experience that fans of the genre will appreciate.
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Review in German | Read full review